Henry Theobald, 87

November 28, 2003

When Henry Theobald stepped off the bus to go to the USO dance in Crowley, La., his steel blue eyes landed on the local girl in the red dress. "He was a dreamboat," said his wife, Yvonne. "He asked me to dance, and I did. We've been dancing since the day we met." Mr. Theobald, 87, of Glenview, a World War II veteran, insurance salesman and former assistant dean of the School of Commerce of Northwestern University's evening division, died of Alzheimer's disease Monday, Nov. 24, in the Glenview Terrace nursing home. A native of Chicago, Mr. Theobald graduated from Schurz High School and was drafted into the Army Air Forces in 1943. He served three years stateside as an administrative specialist, leaving the service a sergeant. In 1946, Mr. Theobald married Yvonne Breaux, who sewed a wedding dress out of his parachute. The couple moved to Chicago and later Evanston, where they lived most of their life together. He worked as an accountant for Illinois Toolworks while attending night classes at Northwestern University. He later went to school full time and received a bachelor's degree in finance in 1953 and a master's degree in business administration in 1954. Mr. Theobald worked for four years in the university's evening division as an assistant dean and taught classes on insurance, his wife said. He was elected master of a local Mason Lodge in 1954 and ran unsuccessfully for alderman of the 38th Ward in 1955, his wife said. He took the loss in stride, she said. "He thought it was a sport and took a chance," she said. "He was doing too much anyway." He started his own insurance company, Henry Theobald Co., which he ran until retiring in 1993. With an IQ of 141 and an outgoing personality, Mr. Theobald was a great businessman, his wife said. Other survivors include a son, Bruce; and two sisters, Florence Wrightson and Phyllis Hesselink. Visitation will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. Friday in Scott & Hebblethwaite Funeral Home, 1240 Waukegan Rd., Glenview. A service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday in Glenview United Methodist Church, 727 Harlem Ave., Glenview.